Be It Ever So Humble
by HazelI'd
Summary: Life changes, but there's no place like home.


Author's Note - I'm jumping all over the place in my head canon timeline for Mike and Connie. This story takes place after my other 3. It sorta, kinda, introduces a new member of the family, and I already have another story almost finished where we find out a tiny bit more about him - like his name. This story is also written mostly from Connie's inner monologue, which is a switch for me. Hope you like it - please let me know! And thank you SO MUCH to all of the kind souls who have reviewed to let me know they are enjoying my Cutterosa stories. Not sure why Mike and Connie are so loud in my head these days, but I'm having fun with them!

On a side note - I don't live in New York, but Google and especially Google Street View are beautiful things. Any characters or places that you may recognize, they don't belong to me. I really don't own Law and Order.

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BE IT EVER SO HUMBLE

Connie Rubirosa-Cutter let out a sigh of sheer contentment as she watched her two-year old daughter running barefoot through the grass in their new front yard. Sofia had grown weary of being cooped up inside the house. As her father and "the guys," as Sofia had dubbed their moving crew, had begun to fill the rooms with furniture and boxes, her little feet slapping on the hardwood floors when she ran through the house and her voice singing loudly did not echo nearly as nicely as they had when the rooms were empty. The hired movers had already departed, which left Mike, Kevin Bernard, and Cyrus Lupo attempting to mount the flatscreen TV on the wall in the family room. Connie decided this might be the opportune time for Sofia to explore the yard, lest she hear some four letter words that Mike and the detectives were liable to use in their attempt to hang the TV that neither Mike nor Connie would want their little chatterbox to repeat.

 _We have a yard,_ Connie thought with delight as she watched Sofia chasing a butterfly that had appeared as the sun was beginning to set on this perfect early spring evening. Connie leaned back against the front porch step and rested a hand on her belly, and the baby inside. The little guy whose impending arrival had necessitated their often talked about move. That they had ended up in the suburbs was still a bit of a surprise. They had discussed a big move in passing not long after they had married. Mike had just moved into Connie's apartment as it was closer to work, but a house was something they both knew they eventually wanted, something that went on their "Everything that Happens Next" list - along with children, a dog, a trip to Europe, among other things. When Sofia came along, the house discussion came up again, but neither Mike nor Connie was quite ready to pull that trigger. Instead, they moved into a larger, two bedroom apartment in their building, and settled in with their new baby, Now that the baby was a two year old toddler, and with the discovery that another little Cutter was on his way, Mike and Connie had decided that it was time to get serious about the search for what, they both knew, would end up being their forever home. They were both hesitant to leave the city, though. Connie loved everything about New York City. It had become her first real home, all on her own, after college and a year as a kindergarten teacher and law school. She had gained a level of confidence and independence there that she knew she would never have found anywhere else. Moving to Manhattan had been a turning point in her life. It had led to her job at the DA's office, which had led to a move to the Homicide division three years later, which had led to meeting Mike the following year, which had led, eventually, to everything that she loved most in the world today. So when their house search began in earnest, there was an unspoken agreement that they were looking mostly in Manhattan, mostly at brownstones. They checked out several, but nothing felt quite right, quite like "home." The thought of moving to the suburbs never really entered either of their minds.

And then one weekend during the late fall, they decided to escape the city for the day. They wanted to take full advantage of a sunny and unusually warm October Saturday and spend as much time as possible outside. They finally settled on taking Sofia to an apple orchard. Connie did some looking around and decided on the Harvest Moon Farm and Orchard. It was about an hour outside of the city. They spent the afternoon touring the farm, picking apples and pumpkins, visiting the farm animals, and checking out items from the many craft vendors on site. Sofia even got her face painted and took a pony ride!

But it was on the drive home that evening, as they were traveling through Westchester County, Sofia already asleep in the back seat, that they came across the hamlet of Katonah. They both took in the quaint, tree-lined streets and beautiful colonial and Victorian style homes. It was quiet and picturesque. Mike looked over at Connie, who raised her eyebrows. Instead of continuing on toward New York CIty, MIke turned and maneuvered their SUV through more of the town. By the time they had toured the whole of Katonah, they just looked at each other and smiled without a word. Mike shrugged at his wife, wordlessly asking the question. Connie simply nodded as her smile grew.

They went home and went to work researching. There were lots of things to consider: financial aspects, work and the increased travel to and from the city, options for daycare, the quality of the local school corporation. But two weeks later, and for several weekends in a row, they were back in Katonah, this time looking at homes. They looked at many different places that were on the market. Both of them seemed most drawn to a beautiful two-story home of classic colonial design. It was in a great neighborhood and part of an outstanding school system. Mike fell in love with the four bedroom, two and a half bath home. He had always said that his parents were gypsies, even before their divorce and his father's absence. So this place, this beautiful home, it represented everything he'd never really had as a child, and everything that he wanted to give to his own family. A place to put down roots.

For Connie, as much as she loved the hustle and bustle of the city, she knew this was the perfect place for them. Though her childhood had been markedly different from Mike's, there were some similarities. She was also a child of divorce, although she maintained a good relationship with her father. And when her mother remarried, she gained a wonderful stepfather who did not try to take her father's place, but was content to love Connie and her siblings and fill his own role in their lives until the day he died. Her mother and stepfather worked hard to create a loving and nurturing environment for Connie and her brother and sister. So, she took one look at the yard, the flower beds, the wrap-around porch complete with a swing, and saw so many things that she remembered and cherished from her childhood, and wanted to have with her own family. A place to make a million memories.

From there, it was just a matter of paperwork. Once they had checked their finances and discovered that making this dream come true was, indeed, doable, all that was left was to dot the i's, cross the t's, and sign their names. They waited until March to move in, letting the worst of the winter weather pass. This gave the previous owners time to get all of their ducks in a row. It also gave Mike and Connie time to get organized and packed up without being overwhelmed and rushed, and to figure out the logistics of their daily commute - the Metro-North Railroad station that was practically within walking distance of their new home and the commuter plans and transit subsidies offered by their workplaces helped immensely with that. They really just wanted to be in the new house before the baby arrived, and since Connie was only six months along, they still had plenty of time to get settled.

 _We bought a house!_ Connie thought to herself for the hundredth time. She was almost giddy with excitement.

Connie heard footsteps approaching from around the corner. She looked over her shoulder to see Lupo and Bernard walking around from the back porch. "I think our work here is done," Kevin said with a smile as they tripped down the steps on either side of Connie. She started to push herself up from her seat on the steps, but Lupo held up his hand.

"No, no, don't get up," he said. "Mike got a phone call. We were just going to say goodbye to you and the munchkin and take off."

Connie smiled. "Thank you both," she said sincerely. "We couldn't have gotten this done without you." The detectives both waved her off, telling her that they were on call if she and Mike needed anything else and promising to come back to visit often once they were all settled in. They both stopped to say goodbye to Sofia before making their way to their car. Connie and Sofia both waved as the detectives backed out of the driveway. They were quite a crew, the four of them, Connie thought. Though their careers and lives had gone in different directions from when they first met while all working together, the friendship had remained. Ironically, for Mike and Lupo, especially. In the beginning, their primary interactions with one another almost always included butting heads. They were wary of each other. Mike had finally admitted to Connie years later that part of the reason in the very beginning was because he was convinced that Lupo harbored feelings for her. "Who could blame him?" he'd said charmingly, "I was already falling for you."

But it was Lupo who had been the one who had watched Mike mope around those first few months after Connie had left for LA. Lupo knew exactly what was going on, even though Mike never said a word. Cyrus wasn't surprised at all several months later when Mike showed up at the Reade Street Bar for their standing appointment for Thursday night drinks, hand in hand with Connie who had come back to New York for the first time since leaving to take care of her mother. She was spending a long weekend with Mike. He knew Mike had spent the holidays on the west coast, so Connie's visit wasn't completely out of the blue. Lupo was never sure how, exactly, they had worked it all out. He was just glad that they did. There weren't many things worse than those months of dealing with a heartsick and grumpy Mike Cutter on a regular basis.

Connie heard the front door open and close. Mike sat down on the step behind her, handing her a bottle of water as he took a drink from his own bottle of beer. "Thanks," she smiled as she took a sip of water, leaning back to rest against his knee. "Who was on the phone?" she asked.

"Oh, just one of the ADAs. Nothing that couldn't have waited until Monday," Mike said. He leaned forward and rested his chin on her shoulder. "How're you feeling? You didn't overdo it today, did you?"

Connie laughed. "You've barely let me lift a finger all week," She turned and kissed his cheek. It was true that this second pregnancy was turning out to be harder than her first. She had experienced a little more morning sickness and a lot more exhaustion. Connie contributed part of that to the fact that she had a two year old to chase around. She was allowed to help with packing and unpacking of items only if they weighed less than ten pounds, which didn't leave much. He let her nowhere near the mountains of books that they had accumulated over the years, both separately and together. She settled on directing the movers on where things should be and unpacking clothes, linens, and Sofia's extensive collection of stuffed animals. Mike had been very solicitous, bordering on overprotective at times, but Connie loved him for it. "I'm fine." she assured him.

They were silent for a long moment, content to sit together and watch their daughter. Sofia was holding a handful of grass above her head, and she laughed as the blades rained down on her when she let them go. Connie reached for MIke's hand, entwining their fingers as she whispered, "We have a house!"

Mike chuckled in response, squeezing her hand. "Yes we do. We have a yard. We can get a dog now."

"One new family member at a time," she said. "You know, I'm already imagining the flowers I can grow in this yard." She placed a hand on her belly. "Maybe not this spring, but…"

"You're growing something much more important right now," Mike said, kissing the side of her head as he moved his hand to join hers on her belly. "We have a fireplace," he whispered in her ear.

"Honey, I don't know if you've noticed," Connie said, "but you actually have a fireplace in your office."

"Yeah, but Santa doesn't come to the one in my office," he answered.

"Christmas lights!" Connie suddenly exclaimed with excitement. "Just think of what we can do with this house at Christmas!"

"I may not be a Scrooge anymore but I hate to break it to you babe, I'm no Clark Griswold," Mike told her.

"Oh, we don't have to go that far," Connie reassured him. "I'm thinking tasteful, all white twinkle lights - nothing gaudy. We don't want the neighbors to hate us." At that moment Sofia came toddling up to them, a fistful of tiny, purple violets in her hand that she had found growing wild in the corner of the yard.

"Look, Mama. Look, Daddy!" Sofia smiled, "Pretty flowers." She held them out to Connie. "Here Mama."

Connie accepted them with a smile, pulling Sofia into a hug and kissing the top of her head. "Thank you baby. They're beautiful."

Sofia beamed, then looked to Mike. "Come play Daddy?" she asked. Sofia, it seemed, had already become as proficient as her mother at using those big, brown eyes to bend him to her will. Just the right look from either of them, and he didn't stand a chance. One more reason to be anxious for the new baby to arrive. Mike needed a boy to even up the girls vs. boys numbers in their household.

"I'll be right there kiddo," Mike told her. Satisfied with his answer, at least for the moment, Sofia ran off to the small swing set at the side of the house. "Our kid is pretty great," Mike said.

Connie watched her with a smile. "Who would have thought, all those years ago when we met in Jack's office, that we'd end up here?" She leaned back against her husband, resting her elbows on his knees that were on either side of her. "Our life is pretty great."

Mike leaned forward, wrapping his arms around her and chuckling as he felt a kick from their baby boy inside. Mike placed his lips next to Connie's ear. "I'm crazy about you. You know that, right?" he whispered.

Connie turned slightly so she was facing him fully. "I've suspected as much for awhile now." She leaned forward and kissed him.

As Mike pulled away he looked deep into her eyes, a smile spread wide across his face. "I just thought you should know," he said quietly, his eyes never leaving hers.

"Daddy swing me?" Sofia's voice called from across the yard.

Connie pressed her lips to his again. "You'd better go play, Daddy."

Mike leaned in to catch her lips one more time before he stood up and set his beer bottle on the porch railing. He made his way down the steps and across the yard. He picked his daughter up and held her high above his head, eliciting a giggle from his little girl as smiles with matching dimples crossed both of their faces. Mike brought her down, and Sofia wrapped her little arms around her father's neck. Mike hugged her close, kissed her forehead, then placed her in the little airplane swing and gave her a gentle push.

Connie watched them intently, smiling as Sofia shrieked with laughter and asked her father to push her higher. She never got tired of watching her husband and their little girl together. She thought back over all of the changes that her life had seen in the past several years. Moving to Los Angeles under difficult circumstances. The anxiety and concern she felt for her mother only compounded the stress of starting a new job in a new place while still so desperately missing the job and the people she had left behind. Well, specifically one person. Falling in love with a man who lived on the other side of the country. As hard as it was in the beginning to be separated, her move across the country turned out to be the catalyst that she and Mike needed to take the next step that they were both too afraid to take while still working together. It was almost as if that was the final hurdle between them, and once it was cleared, Mike especially wanted to wait no longer. Connie had known Mike long enough to know that he wasn't shy about making his feelings known or going after what he wanted. It was just that usually, those feelings were directed towards a case they were working. When they were directed at her, she couldn't resist him even if she had wanted to. And she certainly didn't want to. Once her mother's health had stabilized enough, she had moved in with Connie's brother - and told Connie it was time for her to go back east, back "home." From there the changes only continued, starting with the best one of all: moving back to New York and back to Mike. She started a new job, Mike proposed, they got married, and had a baby. Now they'd bought a house and had another baby on the way. Lots of changes, all in just a few years' time. And Connie was well aware of the fact that the arrival of their new little guy in three months and the outcome of the election next fall might necessitate a few more changes for her professionally…

But she had meant it when she told Mike that their life was great. Not perfect, by any means. But they were in this for the long haul, and had promised each other to always make their marriage and family a priority and to be willing to work at anything that needed it. She and Mike could both be stubborn - a trait that Sofia had also exhibited from time to time. Lord help them if the new baby followed suit! Their workaholic tendencies had gotten better since they had married, and especially since Sofia was born, but hadn't disappeared completely.

But right now, taking in the view from her seat on her front porch steps, she'd be hard-pressed to imagine a life much better than the one she was living.

 _Be it ever so humble,_ Connie thought, _there's no place like home._


End file.
